TNQ - The Northern Quarter Restaurant & Bar — Restaurant in Manchester

Atmosphere: It's hard to be subjective with this review. TNQ has always been our first choice for a casual night out with friends and/or family because it offers what very few places left have to offer - familiarity. Even the first time, even if the staff and menu changes, the atmosphere that they cultivate therein offers this sense of aged familiarity. Much like going to a house that you once grew up in, now occupied with people who don't know about the countless meals, drinks, conversations, and emotions that you have had within those walks. The music is low and only just about auditable, so there's no need to shout at your dining companion to hold a conversation, nor is it whisper talking about the table. Then the lighting is low but not so dark that you need can't see what you're eating.

Service: The FoH team are friendly and eager to help you with your evening and know exactly how much engagement you want for the evening. The bar team are very creative and very knowledgeable about their crafts, offering handheld pieces of art that taste just as exciting and satisfying (of course I only speak of the cocktails). I can only make assumptions about the BoH team as they are often the unsung heroes of day to day operations within the hospitality sector. The team has never disappointed, their menu changes are periodic and exciting, often delivering the very best of the season which is expertly prepared and plated with Instagram and social media in mind.

Product: Obviously depends on the menu they release but you can be assured that everything they do is very much in point. TNQ is classified as a classic British restaurant (according to Google). However, they exhibit influences of French techniques, and a touch of modern Mediterranean flare. The portion sizes are sensible and filling, especially if you're going for a full on 3 course affair, very fair and clearly reflected in the price of the dish. They also offer different menus for Sunday, offering a classic Sunday roast of beef, pork, chicken, and not forgetting the vegetarian too. Their desserts are photo ready and very moreish, well selected to finish the meal. They also host wine paired tasting menus on occasion, showcasing their wine selection.

Price: It would be fair to say that their prices are low considering the quality and quantity of the evening, but it is still a premium evening. Typically we could spend upwards of £120.00 for three courses, two cocktails, a glass wine, coffee to finish for two of us, but you can definitely see that you get a lot for £60.00 per head. We also had a two course Sunday lunch with dessert, a bottle of wine, and tea for the for of us for £140.00 (£35.00 per head).

Final thoughts: I always enjoy my visits, I have not yet had any negative experiences at TNQ even with the introduction of new seasonal menus. I highly recommend TNQ for special occasions but don't forget to check reservations. I also recommend it as a meeting locale as it offers a meet and greet setting to catch up with friends. It is prefect situated within northern quarter so its...

My friend and I went there for lunch and ordered from the express menu, 3 courses from £21.95.

The friend said the squid in her starter had a weird texture and was not like a squid cooked from fresh. My spinach soup was very watery although photogenic. It would have been nice if it had come with a bread.

Our mains were such substandard in quality that we were very disappointed. I believe this restaurant is in the Good Food Guide? My mein was a beef pie but it was so salty that I couldn't finish it. The beef they use are not of good quality. Furthermore, the chips that came with it was stale and they must have been cooked earlier but were just refried when the order came in. Inside some of the chips were not hot, just warm.

My friends seafood pasta main was also of a shocking standard. The prawns they use are not fresh from shell. They are sold already shelled and seasoned (with chemicals). We deal with and eat lots of seafood so know when they are cooked from fresh. My friend said the pasta was too salty and again, the squid had a weird texture. She also said there were still sands in the mussels. That means they were not cleaned properly when prepped. Also when the pasta was put in the bowl, the chef didn't make an effort to present it nicely so it was put in one side of the bowl. I was like, really?

Their express menu is also sold individually in the evening. If fwe paid the full prices and got what we got, we would ask for a refund. Even though it was £16.95 for two courses, the quality of the food was not acceptable. Don't offer lunch price if you think it's ok to offer substandard food because you offer slightly cheaper than evenings. Don't sell at all if you don't notice yourselves that the food you cook is not up to scratch.

Anyway, we were initially going to order desserts but after the horrible mains, we thought we couldn't expect good quality desserts so we left. This is our first time to not finish our food and leave them behind. It was that bad.

Two stars are for the...

We had the Monday special which was £35 for three courses with free wine. With tip and additional cheese course we paid about £90 for two which certainly isn’t nothing for a Monday night and yet all night we had the feeling of being treated like the cheap seats… for example when asked what drinks we wanted we were asked Red, White or Rose, no mention of the type or region or name of any of the wines, just red, white or rose. It felt like since we had gone for the offer with the free wine they felt we wouldn’t care less and were there to just neck it down. I mean the waiter was pleasant enough although he had too many tables to cover meaning we struggled to flag him down through the night. As for the food, every course had only 3 options, 1 meat, 1 fish and 1 vegetarian so very limited in choice, but Ok it’s a special, I get that, but what was disappointing is that both main courses arrived clearly needing sides that we weren’t advised to order… my wife had cod that had greens on the plate but I had to give her half the potatoes (and there weren’t many that I had) and I had chicken that had potatoes and a spoon full of compressed greens, it was screaming out for a crunchy vegetable…it’s a shame because I don’t want to lay in too heavy on a restaurant as these business try to pick up from the pandemic but I think TNQ should either scrap their special, or maybe scrap the free wine part of their special and focus on showcasing their food so that customers having the special will want you come back for their full menu. We ended up feeling cheap but still spent nearly £100, not a...